On January 27, hours after a Washington snowstorm forced the federal government to close early, the House approved, 331-1, a bill (H.R. 1385) to reauthorize the breast cancer research stamp, which expired at the end of 2003.
Sponsored by Rep. Joe Baca (D-CA), the measure would reauthorize the breast cancer stamp for three years through December 31, 2006. On December 9 (see The Source, 12/10/03), the Senate approved a similar bill (S. 2000) reauthorizing the stamp through 2005. Language extending authorization for the stamp through 2005 also was included in the conference report for the FY2004 Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 108-199), which was signed into law on January 23.
Rep. Doug Ose (R-CA) spoke at length about the importance of reauthorizing the breast cancer stamp, stating, “As of December of 2002, 421.3 million breast cancer research stamps have been sold…raising almost $30 million for biomedical breast cancer research at the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense.”
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) agreed that H.R. 1385 is “an important legislative initiative.” She went on to add, “…although it may be on a very cold and stormy day in Washington, D.C., there is a glimmer of sunlight that this legislation be reauthorized so researchers on the front line of saving lives will have an opportunity to do so.”
